Soviets Tested Plan To Raid Iran

WASHINGTON — The Soviet Union carried out an ambitious exercise of its ability to invade Iran six years ago, according to a newly disclosed ``top secret``

Pentagon evaluation and interviews with present and former government officials.

In the exercise, which was conducted on Soviet territory just north of Iran, senior Soviet military officials tested communications systems that would be used and acted out the roles they would play in such an invasion.

The exercise, however, did not involve a significant build-up of Soviet troops on the Iranian border or any large-scale movement of Soviet forces. No actual military intervention was imminent, according to the classified report.

The report provides the first authoritative account of the Soviet exercise, which was the largest of this type involving Iran conducted in recent years and which was carried out at a time of particular turmoil in the region.

The exercise also led to a policy debate inside the Carter administration that was resolved when the president decided to send a ``firm message`` to the Kremlin about the need to maintain stability in the area.

And it encouraged American efforts to develop the Rapid Deployment Force, designed for military intervention in the Persian Gulf region.

The Pentagon evaluation also sheds some light on recent statements by former Reagan administration officials who have been involved in the covert shipment of arms to Iran.

Former national security adviser Robert McFarlane argued that the administration was justified in trying to open a channel to Iranian moderates because of Iranian concern over Soviet military border activity.

A Soviet invasion of Iran is ``more than conceivable if you have examined Soviet exercises conducted in recent years,`` McFarlane said in a speech on Thursday.